Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious Summary (8/10)

Jung departed from Freud’s theories about the unconscious because he believed that the unconscious contents of the psyche consisted of inherited knowledge of archetypes, in addition to contents that were derived from the individual’s conscious life. In* Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious*, Jung explains the reasons for his departure, and gives us a detailed discussion of the shadow, the anima, the animus, and the process of individuation.

What are the archetypes of the collective unconscious?

Your mind is made up of your conscious self and the unconscious. Your unconscious influences your thoughts and behavior without your conscious consent, it is the hand behind the curtain. But what is the unconscious? Jung diverged from the materialistic and restricted definition of unconsciousness that was the consensus among psychologists. He agreed that the unconscious depends on the individual’s personal experiences, but he believed that there was an extra layer to the unconscious – this was what he called the collective unconscious. While the personal unconscious is mostly made up of personal complexes, the collective unconscious is made up of archetypes.

The Shadow, and the Anima

The persona is the false-self according to Jung. It is the identity that you think you have, and it is the way others see you. It is usually the role you play either personally or professionally. It is the uniform you wear every day. It is how you introduce yourself to others, it is how you carry yourself professionally. The persona is duplicitous because it is star of a great play that all the other actors are taking part in. People who get sucked into different domains of life adopt this social mask in order to blend in.

Raw individuality is not a tenable social strategy. You learn at a young age that there is an acceptable pattern of behavior that you must manifest, however, as you grow older, too strict an adherence with this persona identity creates an unfortunate outcome – you become wholly identified by your persona. That is, you are nothing but persona. To become what you seem to be is tempting, because it works. You will be rewarded for it, but the loss of the authentic self is the price you gave to pay.

Materialism

Jung credited Freud for his discoveries in the field of neurosis but he was not without criticism for his former tutor. In Jung’s view, Freud cleared a lot of ground for future psychologists, but only as far as basic physiological concepts permitted. Psychology was viewed by Freud as an offshoot of the physiology of the instincts.

Jung was bothered by this because he believed that there was more to psychology than mere materialism, and rather than accept the excuse to not bother exploring outside the domain of the physiological, Jung ventured beyond the confines of Freud’s theories. Jung believed that archetypal images had no relations to the physical reality of the individual.

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